Brooks Life Science Systems, a division of Brooks Automation, Inc., a leading worldwide provider of automation solutions for compound and biological sample storage and management, announced today that Karolinska Institute Biobank (KI Biobank) is successfully using Brooks’ REMP single-use heat sealed sample tubes to secure the long-term storage of plasma, serum and urine samples in its automated biorepositories.

Brooks has worked with the biobanking experts at KI Biobank to support the development of a best practice workflow which minimizes freeze-thaw cycles and sample contamination. Brooks’ REMP single-use tubes were successfully integrated into a novel robot-driven automated workflow that offers maximum sample security within a temperature controlled environment to ensure the long-term availability of high quality biological samples to support biomedical research.

With hospitals and research institutes around the world building collections of biological samples as a resource for biomedical research, these biorepositories must be able to guarantee the long term, secure storage of vast sample sets. A number of studies have demonstrated the importance of minimizing freeze-thaw cycles and the negative effects of repeated sample exposure to the quality of blood serum and plasma samples.

Clint Haris, Vice President, General Manager, Brooks Life Science Systems added: “The adoption of single-use tubes by such a prestigious organization is validation of Brooks’ technology and we are very proud to be part of this collaboration. The development carried out by the team at the KI Biobank will help ensure a focus on sample integrity and set the standard for secure biological sample processing.”

Brooks’ REMP tubes address the key issues faced in biorepository sample management by providing a format that enables tubes to be picked and thawed once, avoiding repeated freezing and thawing and potential for contamination. In addition, the use of heat sealed tubes can save space and offer higher sample integrity at low temperatures versus alternative solutions.